Charging for PPE: What You Need to Set Up in Dentrix

Now that many offices have re-opened, some are charging a fee for the additional personal protective equipment that is required to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The American Dental Association has suggested the use of the procedure code D1999 to charge for this additional PPE.

If your practice decides to use this code, here are some things you can do in Dentrix to make using it a little easier.

Editing the Procedure Code

First you will need to edit the procedure code and attach a fee for the code in the Procedure Code Editor in the Office Manager. Select code D1999 from the Preventive category and click Edit. You can then change the description and abbreviated description for the code to “PPE.” You can also edit the fee in this dialog box as well. The fee you will charge for PPE should be determined by your practice owner. Although it varies by state and area, I’ve seen the charge for D1999 for PPE range from $10-$25.

If you aren’t planning to bill the code to dental insurance or if you don’t expect insurance to pay and you want to have patients pay this expense, you can select Do Not Bill to Dental Insurance within the procedure code setup, and Dentrix will include the fee in the patient portion of charges.

Add the Code to Initial Reasons for Appointments

Adding the code to the Initial Reasons box makes it quick and easy to add it to an appointment. The Initial Reasons box is available within the Appointment Information dialog box and typically includes commonly scheduled procedures like a prophy or bitewing X-rays. You can edit the procedures that appear as option to choose from in the Initial Reasons box in the Office Manager. Click Maintenance > Practice Setup > Definitions.

In the Definition Type drop-down list, select Appointment Reasons. Add procedure code D1999 and in the Definition Text field, give the code a name that will make sense to the team. This could be as simple as PPE. Click Add, and the code will now be easily accessible to add to each appointment along with the procedures the patient is coming in for. Then be sure to train your staff to add the D1999 code to every appointment.

Create a Custom Claim Remark (Narrative) to Add to Claims

If you plan to bill D1999 to insurance for patients, you can create a custom narrative template you can access from the Remarks for Unusual Services block on the insurance claim and then easily add the narrative to each claim.

Create Custom Clinical Notes

If you use clinical note templates in the Patient Chart, you can create a new template where you describe the additional use of PPE due to COVID-19. This will support your office charging a fee for additional PPE. Make sure that staff is trained to add this new clinical note for patients that have the fee charged on their appointment.

Charging patients and their dental insurance for the cost of additional PPE can help to offset the expense your office has incurred to purchase these items. The suggestions above can help you to set up Dentrix to make this process more streamlined. If you have questions please email me at vectordentalconsulting@gmail.com.


Charlotte Skaggs, Certified Dentrix Trainer

Charlotte Skaggs is the founder of Vector Dental Consulting LLC, a practice management firm focused on taking offices to the next level. Charlotte co-owned and managed a successful dental practice with her husband for 17 years. She has a unique approach to consulting based on the perspective of a practice owner. Charlotte has been using Dentrix for almost 20 years and is a certified Dentrix trainer. Contact Charlotte at vectordentalconsulting@gmail.com.

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